Thurnham Church of England Infant School
The Landway, Bearsted, Maidstone, ME14 4BLOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)
Thurnham Church of England Infant School is a primary school in Maidstone for ages 5 to 7. It is one of the 692 schools in Kent. Its latest Ofsted rating is Good, from an inspection in February 2023.
Ofsted inspection
Inspected 21 February 2023, report published 26 April 2023
- Overall effectiveness
- Good
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years provision
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Met
What Ofsted said
From the inspection on 21 February 2023
Pupils are joyful and safe in this nurturing school. Children make a strong start in early years, where the school's exceptional pastoral care begins. Pupils feel special and highly valued. Staff are dedicated to finding unique talents in every pupil. Expectations are mostly high and often met. Whenever pupils need reminders to move around school with greater care, staff promote positive conduct by celebrating 'Thurnham walking'. Pupils understand the school rules of 'be safe, be ready, be respectful'. Most pupils fulfil these every day. However, some pupils do not show high regard for their environment, and could look after resources more responsibly. Behaviour is good. Staff provide effective support for pupils who need help to manage their emotions. Pupils work and play happily together. If pupils fall out, staff use 'comic-strip conversations' to help pupils understand what happened. This encourages pupils to learn from mistakes and act with kindness. This approach has helped to ensure that bullying is extremely rare. Any isolated cases are dealt with effectively by leaders. Everyone loves the wide variety of after-school clubs, run by staff. Pupils are excited about opportunities including street dance, mindfulness, football, yoga, drawing and animal management.
What the school should improve
- In some foundation subjects, learning activities and key knowledge are not strongly linked. As a result, pupils enjoy activities but do not always know and remember more in subjects such as art and design. Teaching should be designed to help pupils understand and recall knowledge across all areas of the curriculum.
- Pupils are happy and safe, but sometimes the behaviour of some pupils is not highly respectful. This means that some pupils do not show enough regard for property and school routines. Leaders are taking action to address this, and must continue their work to establish expectations for a highly positive and respectful culture across the school.
Pupil numbers and mix
254 pupils on roll, with places for 270
Schools near Thurnham Church of England Infant School
| School | Distance | Ofsted | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roseacre Junior School | 0.1 miles | Ofsted: Good | 73% met the expected standard |
| Madginford Primary School | 0.6 miles | Ofsted: Good | 61% met the expected standard |
| Leigh Academy Bearsted | 0.8 miles | Ofsted: Outstanding | 75% met the expected standard |
| Maidstone, St John's Church of England Primary School | 0.8 miles | Ofsted judgements: Outstanding | 83% met the expected standard |
| Greenfields Community Primary School | 1 mile | Ofsted: Good | 63% met the expected standard |
School details
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Sector
- Local authority maintained
- Age range
- 5 to 7
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Nursery classes
- No
- Headteacher
- Mr Tony Pring
- Phone
- 01622737685
- Address
- The Landway, Bearsted, Maidstone, ME14 4BL
- Local authority
- Kent
- URN
- 118629
School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.